In your dreams

It is so easy to get into the mindset that "I need to be a better christian."  I am not talking about true Christianity... being a follower of Christ, but the senseless religion it often can become.  The lists of things we need to do or not to do.  The mindset i need to love people more, not get angry at people, not murder and give 10% to the church.  These things are all good to do but i am convinced that there is no way that i can do anything good, so why try right?  Left to myself, i am a rotten sinful being.  I would not and could have not chosen to Love Christ.  I hated Him.  It was a wonderful work of his hand that i was saved... not by anything i did.  I wanted to opposite of salvation, but God knowing my needs not my wants saved me! 

And this leads me to everyday life.  How do you day in and day out live like your saved? 

John 21:15-17

 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus *said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you ^[f]love Me more than these?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I ^[g]love You.” He *said to him, “Tend My lambs.” ¹⁶ He *said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you ^[h]love Me?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I ^[i]love You.” He *said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” ¹⁷ He *said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you ^[j]love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you ^[k]love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I ^[l]love You.” Jesus *said to him, “Tend My sheep.

By loving Jesus!  then we can "feed the sheep."  We can only go not sin, and love people if we first love Christ.  

I was humbled last night about trusting in my own abilities.  I went to be upset.  I had failed, and was throwing myself a pity party that i didn't want to leave.  I went to bed  in this mood, in a state i have been in so many times.  I dont want to be like this, angry and sad, but there is nothing i can do to get out of it.  There is nothing within me that can change these bad thought into good thoughts.  

Romans 7:14-20

¹⁴ For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold ^[m]into bondage to sin. ¹⁵ For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. ¹⁶ But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. ¹⁷ So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. ¹⁸ For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. ¹⁹ For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. ²⁰ But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.

I know how you feel Paul!!!  But the story does not end there... because if i am truly a child of God, he would not let me turn my back to Him forever!  

So while i was sleeping i had a dream.  An odd dream.  I was in South America in a orphanage singing songs with the kids when soldiers ran in with guns a blazing.  They shot all the kids balls and instruments, then left.  Then this dream repeated.  But the second time when the soldiers were in there we started to share the love of Christ with them.  They stayed a while and i was talking to some of them about the difference between Gods wrath and His love.  this is where it ended.  I woke up excited that i was able to share Christ with the iminganry soldiers, not upset like when i went to sleep!!

This showed me something.  That we can not "do better."  We cannot live good enough on our own.  All of our good is truly just because Jesus is working through us.  So when im upset or angry or sad there is noting i can do to fix that.  NOTHING!!!  yes, nothing.  All i can do is humbly fall to Jesus feet and admit "i cant do it, Help me Lord!"  

James 1:17-18


¹⁷ Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or ^[r]shifting shadow. ¹⁸ In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be ^[s]a kind of first fruits ^[t]among His creatures.

A More Excellent way

This topic, and 1 corinthians 13 has been on my heart a lot lately.  This passage is often used for weddings, and rightly so (love is important in a marital relationship), but that is not the context of this passage and not how we should see it.  

Chapter 7 is the teaching on marriage followed by 8,9 and 10 about Christian liberty and examples (paul good, isral bad).  Then chaper 11 continues this theme of our liberty into how that should play out in church.  The woman is subjected to the man, and everything is under God. Then the second half has the lords supper.  This is not the traditional lords supper though.  It is written the same as in the gospels but after the presentation of the bread and wine, paul writes something different than the others.  Verse 27-29 reads

²⁷ Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. ²⁸ But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. ²⁹ For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.

Chapter 12 starts with “Now” which separates the pervious topics from what is to come but maintaining that “examine yourself” mentality.  So as I get into the core of chapter 13 look at it in this mannor… Examine yourself!  Look into your life and see where there is no love… and were you are far from Christ, because this is important to do and if you are anything like me, you do not love like Christ.

   Chapter 12 starts with spiritual gifts and then moves to how the body of Christ is to function in unity, each performing his own tasks with his gifts through the holy spirit.  This leads us to 12:31, an important verse

^“31 But earnestly desire the greater gifts.
And I show you a still more excellent way.”

He says to seek and desire the gifts (spiritual gifts), because we should be so devoted to serving out Lord and Savior that we desperately want these gifts.  Vs 31 however stats there is something greater than the gifts.  

So it is no surprise that the next chapter deals with love.  Just think of the importance of love.  It is repeted about 500 time in the bible of which almost a hundred are a command, like the first 2 commandments given in Luke 10; To love the Lord, and to love your neibor.
The first part of Chapter 13 explains how Love is more excellent.  

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body ^[a]to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

This states without love our gifts are nothing.  We can save a million people but without the love of God it profits us nothing.  We can feed all the people of the world and give them shelter, clothes and water but we profit them nothing.  As kyle said a few weeks ago, we are not called to missions for any other reason but to glorify our God!

According to John 4, God is love.  Mathematically God=Love; meaning God cannot do anything other than Love.  Even his anger and wrath is a righteous and loving, if that makes any sense.   God has many many attributes that he is embodied 100% by each of them, so why would john spend a whole chapter explaining that God is Love, and in him is no darkness.  
 
We cannot grasp Gods love for us.  We cannot.  We can see the evidence of his love, and can experience it through many means but will spend eternity eternities trying to understand it.  Acording to romans 5:8

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

And John 15:13 ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

No we have all heard this before.  Yeah, Christ died for us.  We need to ponder this… while we were yet sinners.  God sent his son to die for us while we hated him.  According to the profeit Isaiah 

 the Lord was pleased
To crush Him, ^[l]putting Him to grief; (IS 51:10)

So not only did god love US so much he sent his son to the cross, but he was pleased to do it… for me… a wretched sinner.  

As john newton (wrighter of amazing grace)  told people late in his life when his memory was failing “Although my memory's fading, I remember two things very clearly. I'm a great sinner and Christ is a great Savior.”  

This is true, but i think it would be worded better “im a great sinner and Christ is a even greater savior!”

This is where we stand brothers and sisters, in our Fathers love for his son.  If we truly felt this love to our very core then the next part in 1 Cor 13 would be easy. 

 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, ⁵ does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, ⁶ does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; ^7 [b]bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
⁸ Love never fails

We would show all of these in our daily lives, in our interactions with fellow believers and non-believers alike.  We would love with an unending constant love.  We would rout for fellow believers, instead of being jelous or envious, and our heart would break for the lost in the same way pauls did in romans 9. 

Rom 9:1-3
 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, ² that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. ³ For I could ^[a]wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh,

Wow… accursed means “ Doomed to destruction or misery:” or “Separated from the faithful; cast out of the church; excommunicated.” According to websters 1828 dictionary.  So paul is saying he wishes distruction of himself for the sake of the brothern!  How can he say this??

He can say that truthfully from his heart because he did not try to love people.  That’s right, his focus was not on loving people.  His focused on Christ.  He clung to the cross.  He constantly looked unto the cross, and to God for his strength.  This is seen in all his wrightings.  He was so focused on Christ that he had no other option but to love as Christ did.  Now granted paul was not perfect… and he knew that calling himself “the chief of sinners” but his communion with Christ was so deep he truly loved not because him and his power, but because Christ and His power in pauls life.  “We love because he first loved us” (1 john 4:19)

So the secret to loving people more... Spend more time with Christ.  Actually anything problem in the Christian life is solved by closer communion with Christ.  And I pray often that I would love Christ more, because I fail many times a day. 

I will finish with a soverign grace song i think sums this all up well.  “All I have is Christ”

This first verse shows Gods love… First and foremost in our loves
I once was lost in darkest night
Yet thought I knew the way.
The sin that promised joy and life
Had led me to the grave.
I had no hope that You would own
A rebel to Your will.
And if You had not loved me first
I would refuse You still.

Verse 2 shows the importance in the cross.  We must go to the cross daily! That is go to Christ!!   Because that is the only way we can be saved…

But as I ran my hell-bound race
Indifferent to the cost
You looked upon my helpless state
And led me to the cross.
And I beheld God’s love displayed
You suffered in my place
You bore the wrath reserved for me
Now all I know is grace.

And in light of that we obediently follow out of Love, with wreckless abandonment saying…

Now, Lord, I would be Yours alone
And live so all might see
The strength to follow Your commands
Could never come from me.
Oh Father, use my ransomed life
In any way You choose.
And let my song forever be
My only boast is You.

And this should be our joyous song!  

Hallelujah! All I have is Christ
Hallelujah! Jesus is my life